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Ofcom have ruled out any action against Hollyoaks after receiving 88 complaints about a recent episode centering around group self harm in teenagers, concluding that the issue was handled in a ‘sensitive manner’.

The special episode focused on the journeys of Lily Drinkwell, Peri Lomax and Yasmine Maalik as they were called in by headteacher Sally St Claire to discuss self harm. Peri and Yasmine agreed to keep lily’s secret and later, they all made a pact to self harm together while their guardians remained oblivious.

The episode was intended to raise awareness of the worrying situation which is very real to many teenagers and it came with accompanying press, online material and encouragements for anyone affected to seek help through appropriate channels.

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Concluding their findings, they said: ‘We assessed complaints that a storyline about self-harming was unsuitable before the watershed. While we appreciate this story may have been challenging to watch for some viewers, we found that its intention was to raise awareness of mental health issues. The subject was handled sensitively, and self-harming was not condoned or glamorised.

‘We considered that the scenes involving self-harming were sufficiently limited for pre-watershed audiences.’

The storyline continues on Hollyoaks, with show boss Bryan Kirkwood having assured Metro.co.uk that the consequences of the teenagers’ actions would be explored.

If you have been affected by any issues relating to this story, support and information can be found on Mind’s website or you can contact their confidential helpline on 0300 123 3393.